Southorpe Parish Council (SPC) Update
SPC met on Wednesday 14th of January at Barnack Village Hall with four Councillors present and an apology for absence. We were joined by one member of the public and by Councillor Kevin Tighe (Barnack Ward Councillor).We have the following updates to share:
Local Ward and Police Surgery, 4 February
Councillor Kevin Tighe, and neighbourhood police officers will be holding a Local Ward and Police Surgery on 4 February 2026 at Burghley House, The Orangery Restaurant, at 10-11am. They will be available to answer questions about services provided by Peterborough City Council, as well as provide advice and updates related to local crime and personal/neighbourhood security. No need for an appointment, just turn up.
If you experience or witness any crime locally, it is recommended to report it by calling 101 for non-emergency incidents, and 999 in an emergency. Alternatively, you can visit the Cambridgeshire Police website to report it there.
Litter Pick
Our annual community Litter Pick will take place in February/March (date tbc)–residents are warmly encouraged to take part and help care for our village and its surrounding areas. Details will be shared on the Village Whatsapp group.
Fly tipping
Fly tipping incidents can be reported to Peterborough City Council on 01733 747474 or via their website, and details of what to do when you encounter fly tipping incidents can be found on the website. SPC Councillors continue to follow up on recent cases.
Village Field
The Wildlife Trust will hopefully be visiting the Village Field in February to advise on nature recovery enhancements.
Drainage/Flooding
SPC continues to represent Southorpe on the Multi Agency Committee addressing drainage and sewer problems in the village.
Roads and Traffic calming
Ward meetings continue to discuss traffic calming and traffic safety measures in and around our village.
A reminder that potholes can be reported via the ‘Fix My Street’ website.
Upcoming Southorpe Parish Council meeting
The next Parish Council meeting is on Thursday 5th of March at 7.00 pm at the Barnack Village Hall. (Please note the change of date) Members of the public are very welcome to attend. Minutes of the meeting held on 14 January are on the Village Noticeboard and website.
Councillor Clare Peacock
clare.peacock@southorpeparish.gov.uk
News from Bainton and Ashton Parish Council
New Parish Councillor co-opted
The Parish Council is pleased to announce that they co-opted Neil Smith, an Ashton resident, to the Parish Councillor vacancy at the meeting on 15/1/26. We welcome Neil and look forward to working with him.
Flood avoidance! Please clear your ditches and culverts!
There has been a lot of rain recently and to avoid flooding Anglian Water advise residents who have responsibility for any ditches and culverts outside their property to ensure they are kept clear of debris and excess foliage etc. Also, clear your own drains, downpipes and gutters. Anglian Water will be closely monitoring the network in the area, but if there is a problem, the quickest way to tell them is to visit www.anglianwater.co.uk/tell-us
Alternatively, customers can call the 24/7 customer services team on 0345 7145 145.
Burial ground at Bainton, update
You will have seen previous correspondence on the Bainton graveyard soon becoming full. In about a year, there will no space to be buried there. Barnack and Helpston Parish Councils have said that they are reviewing their policy on who can be buried in their burial grounds. At the recent open Parish Council meeting, there was no strong support for a new burial ground in the village and also there is no land available at present, nor capacity to investigate options for a commercial arrangement and running of a burial site.
Police surgery
There is a drop in police surgery with PC Trevor McSparron arranged for Wednesday February 4th 2026 between 10-11am at the Orangery, Burghley House, Stamford. Please go along and discuss any concerns or issues you have.
Grass cutting tender
The Parish Council is going to tender with their grass cutting contract. The contract is for the verges around Bainton and Ashton throughout the summer months, about 6 cuts, with detailed plans to manage the verges sympathetically to nature recovery and bio-diversity. The deadline is 27/2/26 – please email the Clerk if you are interested.
The Parish Council wants to hear from you…
The Parish Councillors are keen to know what resident priorities are when it comes to their parish. What are your top 3 things you would like the Parish Council to do?
Email the Clerk – details below.
The next meeting is on Thursday 12/3/26 at 7.30pm in the Reading Room.
Mrs Jenny Rice
07889669550 clerk@baintonandashton-pc.gov.uk
Barnack & Pilsgate Parish Council Update
Community
BPC has identified several tasks that could be undertaken for Duke of Edinburgh Awards. These include street sign refurbishment, road sign cleaning, foot way overgrowth removal and similar tasks that would enhance the villages. For further details contact the Clerk.
A polite notice, please clean up after your dog and if a dog waste bin is full, please dispose of the waste appropriately.
Please continue to report all crimes no matter how big or small via the neighbourhood policing online reporting portal, unless it’s urgent then by telephoning 999. The portal can be found via the following – https://www.peterboroughpolice.com/en/report/report.aspx
Additional information to remind you of:
The bobby scheme, The Bobby Project – Making Homes Safer is a charity which helps in securing homes and improving community safety.
The local policing team can be contacted directly if required rather than through the main switchboard. The local officers names and the online contact tool can be found here – https://www.cambs.police.uk/area/your-area/cambridgeshire/peterborough/peterborough-north/about-us/top-reported-crimes-in-this-area
CIL money – Community Infrastructure Levy. Ideas are most welcome on how this money could be spent to support development in the village. Please email the Clerk any ideas you have. A few ideas have already been presented but all ideas are welcome and will be considered.
Please keep an eye on the noticeboards and the community Facebook page for the clubs which take place in the village hall and any upcoming events in the village.
Planning
All planning and tree applications which BPC receive from PCC can be viewed on our website via our planning status/log which are in date order, with the most recent being at the top – https://barnack-pc.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Planning-applications-log-newest-to-oldest.pdf
Enforcement notices have been served by the Enforcement team at PCC for The Orchard (planning app ref – 25/00450/FUL) and The Vineyard (planning app ref – 25/01157/FUL),Uffington Road.The details of the notices can be viewed on PCC’s planning portal under the Enforcement section – https://planpa.peterborough.gov.uk/online-applications/search.do?action=simple&searchType=Enforcement
BPC has submitted further comments to PCC regarding the two sites which can be viewed on the planning portal. The appeal hearing is on 3rd March 2026.
The draft Local Plan is due to be released by PCC for public consultation at the beginning of 2026. BPC are seeking planning advice in preparation for this and have highlighted their concerns to PCC further to the additional housing proposal in Barnack. BPCis keen to get some guidance on timing and policy.
Neighbourhood Plan. Details of the Local Plan will feed into the Neighbourhood Plan. BPC is keen to get the Neighbourhood Plan in line with the new Local Plan and to cooperate with Burghley.
Highways
BPC are currently working on Speedwatch and traffic calming measures within the village. A Speedwatch working group is in the process of being set up. If you would like to help combat speeding in the village and feel you could contribute by joining the group, please do contact the Clerk.
Budget
The budget for financial year 2026-27 has been approved and submitted to PCC. The approved budget reflects the exceptional expenditure items and latent ongoing liabilities.
Additionalpoints
• There are currently twoParish Councillor vacancies. If you live in either Barnack or Pilsgate and this is of interest to you, please contact the Clerk.
• Please see the full meeting Minutes on either the village noticeboards or Barnack Parish Council website – www.barnack-pc.gov.uk
• A reminder that Parish Council meetings are held on the 2nd Monday of every month unless otherwise stated.The Planning Committee Meeting is at 7pm followed by the usual monthly meeting at 7.30pm. Members of the public are very welcome to attend. If you do wish to attend and discuss an item on the agenda or would like an item adding for discussion, please notify the Clerk in advance.
Michelle Dickens.
Barnack & Pilsgate Parish Clerk – clerk@barnack-pc.gov.uk/07595 377236.